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Healthy outlook for local private hospital5

There is good news for local residents with Newcastle Private Hospital being recognised nationally for its innovation and commitment to clinical quality and patient safety.Newcastle Private Hospital has received a $21,510 grant from the Medibank Private Safety and Clinical Improvement Incentive Pool to fund a project to develop and implement processes guaranteeing that all specialists who treat patients at Newcastle Hospital are trained and qualified to practise. At a presentation ceremony held at the hospital today, Newcastle Private Hospital General Manager Shane Neaves spoke about the hospital's commitment to lifting the standards of patient safety and clinical quality. "Since Healthscope Limited purchased Newcastle Private Hospital in June this year, implementation of this project has been a priority. Our patients need to know that our specialists and our facilities are as they are purported to be. "Credentialing & defining the scope of clinical practice is one of the 10 key areas reported on and benchmarked by all Healthscope Hospitals."We applaud Medibank Private for taking an active role in assisting with the implementation and not just the definition of the quality and safety standards they require for their members. This scheme recognises the important partnership between health fund and the hospital in providing consistent, quality care," Mr Neaves said.More than one million dollars has been granted by Medibank Private to hospitals around Australia this year, with New South Wales hospitals receiving a total of almost $165,000 to fund quality and safety projectsMedibank Private's Hospital Contract Manager Jeremy Hose praised the local projects as being of a particularly high standard."Quality and safety is emerging as the number one issue in Australian health care, so it is inspiring that local private hospitals are now being recognised for their effort and innovation."Australia has some of the best quality hospital care in the world, but there is always room for improvement, and improvement and innovation should be supported. Medibank Private is proud to be working with hospitals to improve health outcomes, not just for our members, but for everyone."And it's great to see some real innovation coming not just from the big, metropolitan hospitals, but also from regional facilities such as Newcastle Private. It is this sort of commitment that is keeping Australian private hospitals at the forefront of innovation and safety," Mr Hose said.The lessons learned from the various quality and safety projects funded over the last two years will be shared throughout the health sector, extending the value of individual projects far beyond the hospitals in which they are run.ENDSFor further information please contact: James ConnorsTel: 03 8622 5163 | Mob: 0433 992 677 | email: james_connors@medibank.com.au